Dear Walter,
Thank you for the reply and wish you a happy new year. I mentioned love doing research, just to emphasize what i love - it has nothing more to it. I understand that you mention that I have to have career goals - without which i may not go anywhere. i tell myself that 2 of the 7 PhD years goes to my masters, to justify my not so stellar career progress.

I did read your other post regarding the requirements to be a prof, where you mention: "It is important to understand that academic careers everywhere are built on 1.) networking,networking,networking, 2.) politics, 3.) acquiring funding, 4.) forcing one's way onto authors' lists by all means, 5.) overselling oneself, and at a very distant 6.) actual research and teaching."

It is disheartening to know that politics, forcing onto the author list, and overselling are all ranked above research and teaching. i must admit that 1. i hate politics and 2. i have no idea how to force myself onto the author list ( I have been part of several interesting work, where my name got dropped from the author list.) and 3. i also do not know how to oversell myself. This last two years of my postdoc, i have been working in a project that budgeted for two postdocs, without hiring the additional postdoc. Needless to say, i have been overworking and in the verge of being burnt out. i feel the cynical approach within academics, killed the fire within me.

My 3 years within the industry has been good, really good bosses, good mentors, good money, and a good support system. However, amount of time spent on my kind or research was minimalistic.

My bachelors, masters, and PhD have all been in the same major and minor. I am starting to think, i may need a masters in an allied field to be perceived as versatile - may help me jump into the industrial research ? what do you suggest ?

Career question: I am completing my postdoc fellowship and I love doing research. However, the two years of being bullied and ill-treated by jaded professor with a feudalistic mindset during my postdoc and 7 years under an overambitious professor during my PhD - has made me question, if I want to continue in this field.

I also feel that I do not have sufficient publications: I have 3 first-authored publications from my PhD, and I am about to submit 2 more articles (may take up to 3 months to get published) from my postdoctoral work. I also do not think that I have achieved any groundbreaking discoveries.

Btw, I had a tough project, where I had to work with a really old and complex setup that often breaks down. I did not receive any support from both the technical staff and my supervisor. For this job, I moved from the industry in the US to Europe. Being the only earning member in a family of 3, I was afraid to quit and look for a new postdoc in the middle of the fellowship. (1) How can i my low publication record without coming across as a gripe ?

I have a PhD in chemical and materials engineering, 3 years as a chemical process engineer at the industry, and 2 years as a postdoctoral fellow. (2) Should I look for another postdoctoral fellowship or should I consider other career options ?